You don’t need me to tell you that San Francisco is a city full of hippies, it’s a known fact. But those hippies sometimes do really smart things, and the city’s new solar power plan is just that.
The city plans on giving companies and individuals tax credits, government loans, and rebates if they choose to install solar panels to generate some of their power. It doesn’t sound like much, but it’s so far the largest program of its kind in the country.
It’s up for vote soon, and if it passes, residents could receive up to a $5,000 rebate on solar panel installation, and businesses could get up to $10,000. In addition, the remainder of the costs would be covered by city-sponsored, low-interest loans, which would be paid back by tax based on revised property assessments.
This is a progressive initiative, and one we hope the city of SF adopts, as we’d like to see it spread here, as even cloudy Seattle has enough sunlight to make it worthwhile.